Two sisters who go to the same school and live in the same house have been told only one of them is entitled to a free bus pass.

Sisters Shayla Ford, 14 and Annie, 11, live at the same address in Bryn Celyn, Pentwyn , Cardiff with parents Kim and Robert.

But while Shayla has been granted a continuing free bus pass to Llanishen High School , Annie, who has just started in Year 7 and suffers from Type 1 diabetes, has been told she is not eligible because she lives too near.

Llanishen High School Cardiff

The confusion was caused by Cardiff Council which sent out one letter stating the children were entitled to free school bus travel to Llanishen High but then sent a second letter saying they had made a mistake.

The children concerned went up from Bryn Celyn Primary , Pentwyn, to start Llanishen High School last week and will now have to pay yearly bus fares of £300.

Council letters confusion

“At the beginning of the summer forms came from the council saying Annie was eligible for a free school bus pass, then we had a letter in August saying she was not eligible but my older daughter still gets a free bus pass,” said their mother, Kim.

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“When I rang the council they said different things. They said when our catchment high school Llanedeyrn closed and pupils moved to Llanishen High they had got free bus passes but now they have changed the bus contract.

"I was also told because we don’t live three miles or more away from the school Annie wouldn’t get a pass. It doesn’t make any sense. The second letter just says a mistake was made.”

'Dangerous three mile walk through woods and an underpass'

She says Annie would have to walk more than an hour each way along a dangerous route going through woodland, an underpass and across busy roads.

“Annie is 11 and her diabetes means if her blood sugars drop she can collapse. It would be dangerous for her to walk so far alone.

"If she walked she would have to leave at 7.30am to be on time. The route is all very well in daylight in summer but what about in the dark and rain on your own in winter?”

Owen Austin (top row centre) from Bryn Celyn, Pentwyn, Cardiff, won't get a free bus pass to school while brothers Thomas, 15 and Jack, 13, (pictured either side) will. With them are their younger brothers Ryley, seven, Ollie, five and Harley, three.

Care worker Mark Austin, who also lives in Bryn Celyn, says he was also told by Cardiff Council his 11-year-old son Owen would get a bus pass to Llanishen High, only to get a second letter saying he wouldn’t.

“We received a letter in August saying Owen had been accepted for a free bus pass then we received an email saying the pass would be with us shortly,” Mark said.

"Then we received a letter saying the first letter made a mistake and he was not eligible. When I emailed they said we lived less than three miles from the school.”

An email sent from Cardiff Council transport section leader Simon Williams says: “The route, which I understand has been provided to you, between your home address and the school has again been measured and confirmed using the council’s Geographic Information System as being within three miles walking distance of Llanishen High School.

Not entitled to free school transport

“The shortest walking distance from your home address to Llanishen High School was measured as 2.95 miles, the council’s Geographic Information System measuring the distance from your home to the school gate using the shortest, available walking route. I regret therefore that Owen is not entitled to receive free transport to the school.”

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The father-of-six said this didn’t explain why his older sons were still eligible for free travel as they all live the same distance from Llanishen High. He and wife Claire, who cannot walk with Owen to school because of work hours, say the route is too dangerous and too far for an 11-year-old. Nicola Fergusson, from Bryn Celyn Primary PTA, has launched a petition demanding the council provides free transport to Llanishen High for pupils from Bryn Celyn.

A letter sent to the parents of 11-year-old Owen Austin saying he would be able to travel without a bus pass for two weeks. They say they were later told he would not get a free pass.

A council spokesperson said: “This arrangement dates back to the start of the phased closure of Llanedeyrn High School in 2011. As part of that, the catchment area for Llanishen High School changed in 2011 to include a number of primary schools previously in Llanedeyrn high’s catchment. At that time the council made a decision to continue providing free transport for all children moving from those primaries into Llanishen High School for five years, up until the completion of their GCSEs.

'Year 7 pupils from those areas are not receiving free school transport'

“The reason continued eligibility was set at five years was to provide a period of transition for those parents who had already sent their children to those primary schools, with the expectation that they would then move on to Llanedeyrn high, a school that was closer to home than Llanishen high.

"It also gave sufficient notice to those parents with children about to enter primary so they could consider all other options in light of the catchment changes.

"Currently, Llanishen High pupils in Years 8-11 living in the areas affected by the catchment changes continue to receive free transport. As the five year transition period has now come to an end, Year 7 pupils from those areas are not receiving free school transport.

“The council wrote to parents whose child may be entitled to free transport ahead of the new term, emphasizing that final assessments on eligibility would be completed and a final decision given in writing in due course.”